Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon "China, Stay Strong" Video Surpasses 400 Million Views

Seoul Sends Aid Supplies to Beijing and Others
Repaying the Chinese Government for Sending a Special Envoy During MERS

"A Friend in Need Is a True Friend,
Stay Strong Wuhan and China
Seoul Supports You"

Support video for Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon in China Central (CC)TV report (Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government)

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] A video message of support from Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, to China has surpassed 400 million views in China.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, on the 12th, Mayor Park sent a video supporting China via Weibo, a social networking service operated by China Central Television (CCTV), a Chinese state broadcaster. The video expresses encouragement to China, which is struggling with increasing deaths and confirmed cases due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The city previously provided medical protective suits, medical goggles, and other supplies worth a total of 600 million KRW to Beijing, Chongqing, eight sister cities, and 12 cities in the three northeastern provinces where many ethnic Koreans reside. This video was posted to coincide with the arrival of the supplies in various Chinese cities. Within three days, the video has recorded 410 million views.

In the video, Mayor Park says, "There is a Korean proverb that says, 'A friend in need is a friend indeed.' In China, there is a saying 'Seoljungsongtan (雪中送炭),' meaning to send charcoal to someone in the snow, which signifies giving timely help to those in difficulty." He added, "Five years ago, when Seoul faced great difficulties during the MERS outbreak, the Chinese government, including Beijing, sent a special delegation and provided great assistance."

He continued, "This time, Seoul sends a hand of friendship and support," and added, "Until the day when our Chinese friends return to peaceful daily life, Seoul will stand as your closest friend." He concluded the message in Chinese with "Wuhan, stay strong; China, stay strong; Seoul supports you."

Mayor Park personally appeared and spoke in Chinese, and the response within China has been explosive. The video ranked at the top of the 'Hot Issue' section within three hours of posting and surpassed 140 million views within four hours.

Hundreds of thousands of comments were posted, including positive reactions such as, "Korean companies have continuously provided considerable help, but a message spoken directly is truly touching," "Get rid of THAAD, we are truly good friends," "Korea is the best," and "Everyone, like this for Korea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.